WORCESTER — Three more schools could be added to the growing list of those designated as innovation schools within the Commonwealth, thanks to $225,000 in grants announced Friday morning by Gov. Deval Patrick.

Standing behind a podium in the front lobby of the Claremont Academy, Patrick announced that the academy and schools in Malden and Hudson will each receive a $75,000 fellowship grant that will enable the schools during the next year to establish a plan to open new innovation schools within their districts.

Patrick said the the grants are part of his administration's ongoing effort to close achievement gaps, turn around low-performing schools and give high-performing schools new opportunities to grow.

Worcester Chief Academic Officer Marco C. Rodrigues said that the grant "will enable Claremont Academy to strategically plan an early-college high school model that will set up the stage for the next level for student achievement."

Massachusetts Secretary of Education Matthew Malone called Worcester's innovation school programs a success and applauded the district's willingness to consider different approaches to improve student achievement.

In Worcester, Patrick said that the plan for Claremont Academy will only serve to "bring college within the reach" of city students.

Friday morning, Claremont Academy Principal Ricci Hall gave Patrick, Malone, Rodrigues, and dozens of others, a quick tour of the school, stopping to spend time in Robin Hunt's eighth grade English class.

In class, students were refining their writing and editing skills in small groups, critiquing each other's work. Malone chatted briefly with one group about their favorite book, while Patrick took a moment to ask the students for their impressions of the school.

"We're very excited to showcase the hard work that the kids are doing, and they're excited to have the governor visit," Hunt said between checking in with the groups. The governor also took a moment to talk with Hunt briefly about her impression of the changes in statewide curriculum and testing requirements before he was whisked back to the school's front lobby to announce the new grant funding.

In Worcester, the $75,000 grant will be used to plan for a potential early college innovation school to be housed at Claremont Academy in partnership with Clark University.

There are currently 46 approved innovation schools across the state, with eight programs in Worcester, the most of any municipality, according to Malone. If the nine new school plans are approved, nearly 55 innovation schools could be fully functional by the fall of 2014.

The plans for the Claremont Academy innovation school could be considered by the Worcester School Committee in 2015, after several of the groups involved with the plan's implementation from parents to teachers to administrators and Clark University officials - approve the proposal.

City School Committee member Tracy O'Connell Novick thanked the governor and the secretary for their continued investment in the innovation school program, adding that the state's financial commitment makes is possible for school districts to implement and maintain the ground-breaking programs once the plans are improved.